The four stations – Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Farringdon and Liverpool Street – all now have mobile coverage in the ticket halls, connecting corridors and platforms for the Elizabeth line.
All four mobile network operators – Three UK, EE, Vodafone, and Virgin Media O2 (VMO2) – are taking part in the rollout, which has already delivered 4G on sections of the Jubilee, Northern and Central lines.
TfL and Boldyn Networks will continue to expand the coverage to further stations on the Elizabeth line, as well as to the tunnelled sections. Recent progress means that Boldyn Networks can now deliver 4G and 5G coverage to the tunnelled sections, rather than just 4G coverage as previously announced.
By the end of spring 2024, the whole of the 73 miles of the Elizabeth line from Reading and Heathrow to Shenfield and Abbey Wood via the West End, will have mobile coverage.
Andy Lord, London’s Transport Commissioner, explained, “This is a vital project for London, allowing customers to be more connected underground and get the latest travel information and news, as well as stay in contact with work, friends and families while travelling on our network.
“Our engineers will be working closely with Boldyn Networks over Christmas and throughout 2024 to expand coverage to more stations and tunnels across London, and we remain committed to having a significant proportion of the entire Tube network connected by the end of 2024.”
Billy D’Arcy, CEO, UK and Ireland, Boldyn Networks, said, “Our work with TfL across the transport network has rapidly accelerated this year and we are excited to announce this further expansion of high-speed mobile connectivity.
“This is another important milestone in our mission to deploy a new digital infrastructure across London that connects businesses and people, and helps to make the city a safer and smarter place to live, work and travel.”
Boldyn Networks is a neutral host network provider and is implementing the project after being awarded a 20-year concession by TfL in June 2021 to deliver 5G-ready mobile connectivity across the entire London Underground network. Boldyn Networks, formerly BAI Communications, is installing a fibre backbone across the capital to improve connectivity both above and below ground.
Uninterrupted mobile coverage across the TfL network will also host the new Emergency Services Network (ESN) which, when fully operational, will give first responders immediate access to life-saving data, images and information in live situations and emergencies on the frontline.